Birth of Malaysia's second panda cub shows they are happy to live there: PM Najib

Liang Liang, a female giant panda on loan from China cuddling her cub inside her enclosure at Zoo Negara Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. PHOTO: EPA-EFE

PETALING JAYA (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - The birth of the second cub to Malaysia's giant pandas that are on loan from China shows that they are happy to live in the country, Prime Minister Najib Razak has said.

Datuk Seri Najib was happy to share the country's joy over the birth by tweeting a photo of Liang Liang and her newborn cub.

"The second cub in less than four years. It appears that Xing Xing and Liang Liang are happy in Malaysia," he tweeted on Thursday (Jan 18).

Attached to the Prime Minister's tweet was an earlier tweet by the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry to announce the birth.

The cub, weighing 150g, was born on Sunday at 7.50am at the national zoo.

China's embassy in Malaysia, in a statement, said the birth of the second giant panda cub in Malaysia is a sign of more good tidings for the country's relations with China.

Liang Liang and Xing Xing came to Malaysia in 2014 on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Malaysia.

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The pair's first cub, Nuan Nuan, was born at the zoo on Aug 15, 2015.

"It is indeed a piece of good news that Liang Liang gave birth to another baby on the morning of Jan 14," the statement said.

"The Chinese Embassy in Malaysia is delighted to share this pleasant surprise with our Malaysian friends," it added.

The statement said that China and Malaysia are close friends and good neighbours, noting that the panda family had attracted a lot of attention as they are regarded as a symbol of the friendship between Malaysia and China.

"As we embrace the new year of 2018, Xing Xing and Liang Liang brought about good luck and pleasure again to our Malaysian friends," the statement said. "We wish the baby panda would grow up healthy and bring good luck to the China-Malaysia relations."

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